A Crowdsourcing Approach to Chinese Vocabulary Learning

The fast development of new technology, particularly web-based andmobile technology, has been transforming ways how languages aretaught and learned. The current study examines the use of Memrise, acrowdsourcing spaced repetition program, by college students ofChinese, and its effects on Chinese character learning. The findings ofthe study demonstrate the effectiveness of the program. The study hasalso identified important factors and conditions that should exist inorder for the use of the program to be successful. Based on the findingsof the study, suggestions are made for language teachers in regards tousing Memrise or similar programs in vocabulary teaching. Eventhough the current study focuses on Chinese character learning, thefindings of the study can be applied to any other languages

Effectiveness of textually-enhanced captions on Chinese high-school EFL learners’ incidental vocabulary learning

This study employed mixed-methods approach to investigate the impact of textually-enhanced captions on EFL learners’ incidental vocabulary gains and learners’ perceptions of the captioning usefulness in a multi-modal learning environment. 133 Chinese EFL high school learners of the low-intermediate level were randomly assigned to English captions with highlighted target words and L1 gloss (ECL1), Chinese and English captions (CEC), Chinese and English captions with highlighted target words (CECGW), and no captions (NC). Our quasi-experimental findings did not detect any significant differences among the caption types on vocabulary form recognition while ECL1 was found the most effective in meaning recall and recognition. Captioning types and learners’ language proficiency exerted medium-to-large effects on meaning recall and meaning recognition. Our qualitative data suggested the participants generally viewed captioned videos positively, with variability in perceptions of concurrent presentation of information. The saliency of L1 gloss could direct the viewers’ attention to the semantic features of a word and reinforce sound-form-meaning connections. Videos lacking L1 glosses of target words had relatively little effect on learners’ vocabulary learning while more textual inputs might not necessarily result in vocabulary gains. Pedagogical implications are proposed for teachers’ adoption of L1 in captioned videos to enhance learners’ learning effectiveness.Este estudio investigó el impacto y las percepciones de los estudiantes de los subtítulos mejorados textualmente en las ganancias incidentales de vocabulario de los estudiantes de inglés como lengua extranjera en un entorno de aprendizaje multimodal. 133 estudiantes chinos de inglés como lengua extranjera de nivel intermedio bajo fueron asignados aleatoriamente a subtítulos en inglés con palabras objetivo resaltadas y brillo L1 (ECL1), subtítulos en chino e inglés (CEC), subtítulos en chino e inglés con palabras objetivo resaltadas (CECGW), y sin subtítulos (NC). Nuestros hallazgos cuasi-experimentales no detectaron diferencias significativas entre los tipos de subtítulos en el reconocimiento de formas de vocabulario, mientras que ECL1 resultó ser el más efectivo para recordar y reconocer significados. Nuestros datos cualitativos sugirieron que los participantes generalmente veían los videos subtitulados de manera positiva, con variabilidad en las percepciones de la presentación simultánea de información. La prominencia del brillo L1 podría dirigir la atención de los espectadores a las palabras objetivo y reforzar las conexiones de la forma del sonido y el significado

The Use Of English Caption To Develop College Students’ Vocabulary Size

Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mendeskripsikan preferensi siswa, dan untuk membandingkan skor ukuran kosakata antara mahasiswa yang menonton film dengan dan tanpa teks bahasa Inggris, dan untuk mendeskripsikan manfaat menonton film dengan dan tanpa teks bahasa Inggris berdasarkan pilihan dan opini siswa.  Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kuantitatif dan kualitatif.  Subjek penelitian ini adalah 42 mahasiswa yang kemudian dibagi menjadi yang biasanya menonton film dengan dan tanpa teks bahasa Inggris.  Instrumen penelitian dalam penelitian ini adalah angket terbuka dan tes online.  Data dari angket terbuka dianalisis secara kualitatif sedangkan data kuantitatif dianalisis dengan uji t-test.  Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa sebagian besar peserta biasanya menonton film dengan teks bahasa Inggris.  Ada perbedaan skor yang signifikan antara kelompok siswa yang menonton film dengan dan tanpa teks bahasa Inggris karena signifikansi tes 0,042 dan 0,046 lebih rendah dari 0,05. Manfaat menonton film dengan teks bahasa Inggris adalah mendapatkan kosakata baru, meningkatkan pengucapan, melatih keterampilan mendengarkan, dan lebih mudah memahami film.  Manfaat menonton film tanpa teks bahasa Inggris adalah memahami film, semakin mudah dibaca, mengetahui makna langsung kosakata, menikmati film dan mendapatkan kosakata baru

The Riches of Hands-on Subtitling in the Foreign Language Classroom

Using subtitles and subtitling as a means of diversifying foreign language teaching and learning has become increasingly popular in recent decades, particularly across Europe, where the European Commission has promoted, among others, the development of projects like ClipFlair, a web-based subtitling platform for foreign language learning (FLL). As part of this boost of research on FLL through subtitling, this empirical study was conducted in mainland China, where the role of subtitling in foreign language classroom has not been widely recognised by scholars. Carried out on seventeen higher education level Chinese L1 students, the experiment studied the effects of performing subtitling activities on English L2 vocabulary acquisition and discovered that doing subtitling tasks from L2 to L1 can result in a significantly better performance in vocabulary acquisition than doing intralingual subtitling activities (L2 to L2) or doing non-subtitling activities.El uso de los subtítulos y de la subtitulación como prácticas didácticas que ayudan a diversificar la enseñanza y aprendizaje de lenguas extranjeras ha crecido en popularidad en las últimas décadas, especialmente en Europa, donde la Comisión Europea ha fomentado, entre otros, proyectos como ClipFlair, una plataforma de subtitulado en la nube para el aprendizaje de lenguas extranjeras. Enmarcado dentro de este auge investigador, el estudio empírico que aquí se documenta se ha llevado a cabo en China, donde el uso de la subtitulación en el aula de idiomas extranjeros apenas si ha recibido atención por parte de los académicos. El experimento, que ha contado con diecisiete estudiantes de grado y chino como L1, explora el impacto de la subtitulación en la adquisición de vocabulario en inglés (L2). Los resultados demuestran que la práctica activa de subtitular videos interlingüísticamente, de L2 a L1, puede conducir a una mayor adquisición de vocabulario que cuando las tareas se centran en la subtitulación intralingüística (de L2 a L2) o son actividades que no tienen nada que ver con la subtitulación

The Effects of Audio Comedy Test on Listening Comprehension Skills of EFL Learners

This study aims to investigate the effects of audio comedy on English listening comprehension test results of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. The English listening test comprises four sections; each section has a seven-minute comedy audio mode and 13 questions, and participants listen to the four sections successively. This study was conducted with 117 sophomore, junior and senior students at Sebelas Maret University in Indonesia. Two-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was adopted to distinguish between male and female students on the four successive test sections measuring English listening comprehension skills. The findings are: 1. Successive practice tests will stimulate English listening skills; and 2. Successive practice tests will improve students’ English listening skills. The comedy audio mode creates a low-stress English listening atmosphere and reduces the learner’s anxiety

Extensive viewing of captioned and subtitled TV series: a study of L2 vocabulary learning adolescents

This study aims at exploring the potential of extensive TV viewing for L2 vocabulary learning, and the effects associated with the language of the on-screen text (L1 or L2), type of instruction (pre-teaching target items or not) and learners' proficiency. A total of 106 secondary school students (Grade 8) divided into 4 classes participated in a one-year pedagogical intervention, viewing 24 episodes of a TV series under four experimental conditions with each class being assigned to a different treatment: (1) captions and pre-teaching, (2) captions and non-pre-teaching, (3) subtitles and pre-teaching, and (4) subtitles and non-pre-teaching. Following a pre-/post-test design, form recall and meaning recall gains were examined. Results showed that participants learnt vocabulary in all four conditions, with greater gains in recalling form than in recalling form and meaning. The analysis also showed that, overall, groups that were pre-taught the target items performed better, independently of the language of the on-screen text. An important finding is the role of learners' proficiency prior to the intervention, with higher proficiency related to higher gains. The study contributes to the area of foreign language learning through audio-visual input with results from a longitudinal, classroom-based study with adolescent learners

Smartphone use in English Language Learning

The current century has been considered very often as a century of technology by people of different genres. The industry of technology is growing rapidly, and a lot of people including researchers, educators, teachers and learners in a way are becoming part of this huge development by technology use. In addition, the rate of internet connection continues to increase, and technology which provides easy access on the internet by mobile devices is becoming invisible. More than ever, technology of all types including Smartphones is taking an important place in our daily lives. It is being used by a lot of people, at work, at school, at home, in cafés and everywhere. Having such a device, one can have access on the internet everywhere, and can use it for different purposes, among others for language learning. Therefore, this research tried to give answers to some important questions related to Smartphone use in language learning in secondary schools. It provided answers to the following questions: What is students’ perception of Smartphone use in English language learning? In English language learning for what purpose do they mostly use it? Where do they mostly use it for learning purposes? Data gathered from the questionnaire were analyzed carefully using the SPSS and interpreted using spreadsheet and charts

Dual device user interface design for ubiquitous language learning: Mobile phone and interactive television (iTV)

In this paper we describe the design and development of a system that facilitates language learning from a combination of two devices, interactive television (iTV) and mobile phone. We present a number of requirements for technologies to support informal language learning based on theories of language learning, theories of formal and informal learning, our own studies of adult language learners and the affordances of iTV as a medium to support learning. We describe TAMALLE (television and mobile phone assisted language learning environment), a prototype system based on these requirements and discuss some of the user interface design issues that arise in the context of cross platform dual device systems for ubiquitous learning

The Use of Song Lyrics in Teaching Listening (a Case Study of Junior High School Grade 8 in Bandung)

This research entitled The Use of Song Lyrics in Teaching Listening (A Case Study of Junior High School Grade 8 in Bandung) was aimed at investigating the students' response toward the use of song lyrics during the teaching of listening, and the challenges faced by the teacher and students in using song lyrics in listening class. This research employed qualitative method by involving a case study in one of junior high school in Bandung. The data were obtained through classroom observation and questionnaire. The data from classroom observation were obtained from video recording, student's checklist and teacher's field notes during the teaching program. The data analysis were presented in a form of descriptive explanation, and then the data collected from questionnaire were analyzed and summarized by using the frequency table, represented in graphs, then described the phenomenon found. The findings of this study showed the use of song lyrics as an effective technique for teaching listening. Significantly, it can be seen that the students enjoyed their listening activity. As a result, they responded positively and enthusiastically to the lesson, and engaged easily in the whole learning process

Online language learning to develop english reading and listening skills in university students: a pilot stuy in Hong Kong

The range of technological applications in different educational contexts makes it necessary for continued inquiry into online language learning (OLL), especially in relation to its impact on different learner populations whose perception and acceptance of OLL can vary across settings. This pilot study involved 66 Chinese students in a Hong Kong university and examined their OLL experience in online reading and listening activities. Results of the study suggest the easy availability of internet resources can greatly enhance students’ OLL experience, while raising four challenges in the areas of online materials development, student motivation, pedagogy-technology interface, and intercultural communicative competence. Possible ways of tackling such challenges are outlined. The article concludes with a view that successful OLL needs to be predicated on a tripartite framework of hardware, software and humanware